list.co.uk/festival Reviews | F E S T I VA L T H E AT R E
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ENOUGH Drama shimmers with rage and tenderness ●●●●●
Sometimes, the cracks in gloss paint are easy to see, but only if the viewer moves closer. Underneath the perfect glamorous smiles and slick retro uniforms of air stewardesses Toni (Amanda Wright) and Jane (Louise Ludgate) lies desperation, physical abuse and crumbling family units, and no amount of Pinot Grigio will wash it all away.
Playwright Stef Smith has created a pearl here: shining and incandescent, but with grit underneath it. A seemingly simple set by Kai Fischer, with sand on the ground and basic minimalist furniture, reveals more jagged lines as the story evolves.
Bryony Shanahan directs the two like a bizarre karaoke duet between friends where the tempo keeps changing and words are improvised. Wright and Ludgate are outstanding, vacillating between prim humour and grim horror, as they peel off the veneers of meaning in Smith's lyrical writing. Female friendship and the roles of women are
dissected in a production that's hard to resist. It's savage, funny and heartbreaking, because it chases the truth that lurks in the shadows, confronting the secret selves that only we know. (Lorna Irvine) n Traverse, until 25 Aug, (not 12), times vary, £21 (£15.50).
BEEP BOOP Exploring the stupidity of technology ●●●●● BOULDER Classical myth meets total theatre ●●●●●
Beep boop, a performance by Richard Saudek (created with Jess Novak and Wes Grantom), explores the world’s unhealthy addiction to technology and the loneliness it evokes. Physical comedy, sound and visuals are used effectively to magnify this intense relationship in a darkly funny show. Using no dialogue, beep boop manages to detail one man's journey from infatuation to discontentment. As expected, no social platform is safe from
Saudek’s microscope and everything from Instagram to instant messaging comes under fire. Repetition is used as a simple yet powerful tool in this piece, pointing out the new ways in which people move and react to technological overlords.
The sound work accompanying the show is essential to its success, and rapid fire sound effects prove the central nerve system of the piece. In among the storytelling, Saudek finds time to play a live version of Tinder with the audience, which perfectly encapsulates the app’s problematic approach to finding true love (or not). Beep boop is an inventive, slick and exciting show that delivers laughs with serious undertones. (Becki Crossley) n Assembly George Square, until 25 Aug (not 12, 19), 2.45pm, £12–£11 (£10–£11).
Kent-based Half a String theatre company had a hit two years back with the enchanting A Heart at Sea, and they return this year with a far more ambitious show. Combining puppetry, animation, live music and an elaborate set, Boulder takes as its starting point the Greek myth of Sisyphus, condemned to push a giant rock up a mountain for eternity, only for it to ceaselessly crash back down again.
While there’s inevitably a fair amount of repetition in Boulder, it’s to the company’s credit that they discover so much humanity in their story, as their grouchy central figure – given plenty of character by puppeteer Nicholas Halliwell – develops a strange relationship with his burden. Equally impressive are designer-director Peter Morton’s intricate puppets and props, not least the massive boulder itself and the mysteries it contains.
But Boulder is a far opaquer show than Half a String’s previous work: it’s not always entirely clear what’s going on, and a little spoken storytelling wouldn’t have gone amiss. Its conclusion – that determination and resilience can be ends in themselves – is laudable, but the route they take to get there could be better signposted. (David Kettle) n Pleasance Courtyard, until 17 Aug, 12.10pm, £9–£12 (£8–£11).
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THE POPULARS An energetic celebration of the unifying power of dance ●●●●●
Volcano Theatre insist on a dynamic dramaturgy that challenges existing ways of making theatre. Their previous visit to the Fringe radically reworked Chekhov’s Seagulls with a tough, physical style, and a tank of water that transformed their venue into a watery dreamscape. For 2019, director Paul Davies wants to get political.
One of four frenetic dancers stops briefly to grab an audience
member’s hands, look them square in the eyes and say: ‘Are you ready?’ They’re not given time to answer before their hands are flung across the dancer’s sweaty face, onto his stubbly, sweaty neck and down onto his soaked chest. They’re thrust aside before they can process what’s happened.
The Populars manages to gather its audience of stand-offish Brits into all sorts of random interactions with strangers, and its actors manage to make these interactive moments not feel contrived or like forced fun.
Nearly three quarters of the show comprises the cast dancing
wildly and erratically to nostalgic pop and rock songs in the space, contorting their bodies in ways that almost become gruesome, but are addictive to watch all the same. The pace and spectacle of the show are thrilling enough to make you forget you’re standing the whole time and haven’t been offered a seat. The thread that connects all this is the sweet message that dancing is a coping mechanism for us all in tough times. But in moments of speech, the show shoehorns in political themes about Brexit which feel unnecessary: having a show about the power of friends united by dance – and indeed the power of dance to unite us all – is a powerful enough political message as it is. (Adam Bloodworth) n Summerhall, until 25 Aug (not 12, 19), 9.20pm, £12 (£8).
7–14 Aug 2019 THE LIST FESTIVAL 91